


If I Know What Love Is, It Is Because Of You

by can_i_slytherin



Category: Marvel
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Lesbian Character, Light Angst, Minor Clint Barton/Pietro Maximoff, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, Trans Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-06
Updated: 2020-01-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:29:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22150336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/can_i_slytherin/pseuds/can_i_slytherin
Summary: Soulmates AU in which your soulmate's name is tattooed on your arm- with the twist of a trans character.
Relationships: Wanda Maximoff/Natasha Romanov
Comments: 49
Kudos: 76





	If I Know What Love Is, It Is Because Of You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Flickering_Candle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flickering_Candle/gifts).



Wanda Maximoff, lesser known as the Scarlet Witch, was born with the name  _ Nathaniel A Romanov  _ on her wrist. She had fantasised about her soulmate since she had discovered what the names meant and dreamt of the day that she would meet her Fated One. 

However, one day, when Wanda turned eighteen, her tattoo faded from existence. 

“PIETRO!” She screamed for her brother, red tendrils of magic dancing on the edge of her fingertips as she struggled to keep her emotions at bay. 

In a flash of blue and a gust of wind, Pietro was knelt in front of her, white-blond hair mussed up from the wind, and covered her hands with his, frowning at her in concern. 

“ _ What’s the matter _ ?” He whispered in their mother tongue, keeping their conversation private. 

“ _ My tattoo. _ ” She clawed at her arm, heart racing and stomach heavy with dread, “ _ It’s gone. _ ” 

“ _ What do you mean? Let me see. _ ” He held his hand out expectantly, throwing her an easy smile when she recoiled gently. 

“ _ I’m not lying to you. _ ” She whispered, eyes stinging with unshed tears and voice tight with emotion. 

“ _ I never said that you were. _ ” Pietro whispered, rubbing his thumbs across the backs of her hands in a comforting gesture, “ _ Let me see. Trust me, little one. _ ” 

She took a deep breath, trying to calm her beating heart, and nodded gently, holding her wrist out to her brother, turning her head away through fear of seeing a blank wrist. 

“ _ Wanda… _ ” Pietro whispered, his voice soft and gently as he traced a pattern on the inside of Wanda’s forearm, “ _ Look…”  _

Wanda shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut in her refusal to glance at the pale expanse of skin, “ _ I don’t want to. _ ” 

“ _ Wanda! _ ” He hissed, tugging gently on her arm, “ _ Trust me, just open your eyes and  _ **_look_ ** _.”  _

Wanda cracked one eye open, hesitantly staring down at her tattoo that had now returned, and gasped at the sight that greeted her, “ _ What is this? _ ” She whispered, eyes wide. 

“ _ The name of your soulmate. _ ” 

Wanda shook her head hastily, denial coating her voice as she spoke, “ _ No, not possible. That is not his name. _ ” 

“ _ Sometimes things change. _ ” Pietro soothed, rubbing a thumb across her knuckles, “ _ It is not a bad thing, little sister. _ ” 

“ _ I don’t want it to change. It’s wrong. I don’t like it!”  _ She wailed, her nails digging into Pietro’s palms. 

Pietro shook her gently, his eyes cold and authoritative, “ _ No. That is where you are wrong, Wanda. _ ” 

Wanda’s head snapped up, tears in her eyes, “ _How can you be so sure?_ _Everyone tells us to believe that same-sex couples are wrong and dirty. How can you defy that?_ ” 

Pietro sighed, taking a deep breath, and pulled away from Wanda before pulling up the hem of his henley, exposing the lettering of his tattoo. 

_ Clint F Barton.  _

“ _ Your soulmate is a man? _ ” She whispered, hand inching forward to trace the outline of the tattoo. 

The silver-haired boy nodded, “ _ Of course.”  _ Pietro took her hands in his again, gently smiling at her when they locked gazes, “ _ Does that make me dirty and wrong? For loving someone when fate has assigned them to me? For loving someone, regardless of their gender? _ ” 

Wanda shook her head, “ _ Of course not. It is not something that you can control. The fates have decided and you must follow. _ ” 

“ _ So, _ ” Pietro began, “ _ Why is it okay for me, but not for you? _ ” Wanda shrugged and the man shook his head, giving Wanda’s hands a comforting squeeze, “ _ I understand that you are scared, but do not toss aside your soulmate purely for their gender. Learn to love them for who they are, not for what they have between their legs. It is a shallow way to live otherwise. _ ”

Wanda leant forward, a soft smile on her face, and rested their foreheads together, “ _ You are wise beyond your years. _ ” She took a deep breath and released it in a heavy sigh, “ _ I will try to disregard her gender. I will try to love for personality, but it will be hard- I was never as strong as you. _ ” 

“ _ No, _ ” Pietro shook his head, squeezing her hands again, “ _ You are stronger _ .”

It took Wanda a few years to accept her soulmate, to realise that there was nothing that she could do but love them unconditionally- as she was meant to. She hid her tattoo for many years, underneath a bandage, with the reasoning of:  _ out of sight, out of mind.  _

Though, eventually, her brother managed to convince her to leave it uncovered and wear it like a badge of pride- just as he did with his own mark. 

Then, she was introduced to Natasha Romanoff- the Black Widow. 

“This is Natasha, more commonly known as the Black Widow, and she is one of the best fighters on this team.” Steve Rogers- or Captain America- explained with a gentle, fatherly smile. 

Natasha stepped forward, a small smirk on her lips, and bumped her hip against Steve’s side as she slunk past him. She was a beautiful woman with long, flowing red hair and mesmerising green eyes. She had a body to die for and knew how to use it to her advantage; she walked with the grace of a ballerina and the confidence of a trained assassin. 

Wanda’s mouth went dry and her wrist stung, a gentle warmth spreading across her skin as she gazed into the endless fields of green contained within Natasha’s eyes. She gasped, hand flying down to cover the tattoo on her wrist, and staggered backwards when Natasha grinned, her fingers ghosting over the skin of her thigh. 

“ _ Natalia. _ ” Wanda breathed, eyes wide and chest heaving. 

“It’s been a while since I’ve heard that name.” Natasha chuckled, holding Wanda’s gaze as he eyes glossed over with tears. 

“Why?” 

“Natalia was a bad woman, who did bad things to good people and I wanted to get away from that.” Natasha whispered, seeming sheepish for the first time since their meeting. 

“I think that that doesn’t matter to me.” Wanda whispered, fiddling with the zip on her S.H.I.E.L.D-issued hoodie, “I care about you regardless of whether you are a good person or a bad one. I care about your past and your present and your future. It all matters to me, but it doesn’t make me think any less of you.” Wanda looked down at her hands, red sparks dancing between her fingers, “We have all done things that we are not proud of.” 

“You know,” Natasha whispered, her tongue feeling heavy in her mouth, “if we weren’t already fated, I’d definitely date you.” 

Wanda laughed and glanced down at the tattoo, a gentle frown settling onto her features, “Can I ask you something?” 

Natasha recoiled before smiling and nodding, “Of course, what’s the matter?” 

“Were you once Nathaniel?” Wanda whispered, steadily avoiding Natasha’s gaze. 

“Once upon a time.” Natasha whispered, fingers ghosting over the bulge in her t-shirt, “I used to be a man.” 

“But, now you are a woman?” Wanda replied. 

Natasha nodded, “Yes.” She looked thoughtful for a moment before catching Wanda’s gaze with a determined smile, “Do you know what transgender means?” 

“I think so?” 

“Well,” She began, “it’s when a woman or man feels as if they have been born in the wrong body and wish to be the opposite gender.” She took a deep breath and motioned to the table in the middle of the room, sitting down at it with Wanda opposite her, “Before I joined the Red Room, I was Nathaniel. I felt wrong though, like I wanted something I couldn’t have. At first, I thought that I may have been gay, so I tried to kiss a man, but that didn’t do much for me. So, I started to look into it. Then, after a lot of research, I realised that I was transgender and that I wanted to be a woman. When I was taken to the Red Room, I told them this and they helped me become the person that I wanted to become physically and mentally. If there’s anything that I thank them for, it’s making me who I am- who I always longed to be.” 

Wanda reached across, taking Natasha’s hand in her own and gave it a gentle squeeze, “I loved you as Nathaniel and I love you now as Natalia. I’m proud of you and I want to get to know who you were as well as who you are. I want to be a good soulmate to you and I want you to fall in love with me- not because we are fated to do so, but because you want to.” 

Natasha laughed, a wet-sounding noise, and nodded, squeezing Wanda’s hand with as much strength as she could, “I would love that, Little Red. How about we start with coffee?” 

Wanda nodded, smiling gently, “I would like that, very much.” 

“Shall we go, then?” Natasha rose from the table, smiling wide, and held an arm out for Wanda to take. 

Wanda stood, slipping her arm through Natasha’s, and allowed herself to be guided out of the building. 

She didn’t fully understand why her tattoo changed or what made Natasha feel such a way all those years ago, but she hoped that- in the years to come- she would get answers to her questions or learn to love Natasha regardless. 

It would be a long journey, but with Natasha by her side, she was willing to take it. 


End file.
